Quick Hard Money Loans for Commercial and Investment Real Estate

How Hard Money Loans Work with Gelt Financial

Gelt Financial provides short-term, asset-based hard money loans for commercial and investment properties when banks are too slow or say no. We use our own funds, focus on real estate and your exit strategy, and can often close in days rather than weeks or months. Typical repayment periods range from 6 to 36 months, giving investors enough time to execute a refinance or sale. Our approval process is streamlined, so a simple online loan application and basic documents are usually enough to secure terms.

We know real estate investors rarely fit cookie-cutter bank guidelines, so we structure hard money loans around your deal, your equity, and your exit plan, not rigid formulas.

Simple, asset-based underwriting focused on property value and equity

Our hard money loans are underwritten primarily on the property, its current or stabilized value, and your equity position. We look at the strength of the collateral property, your experience, and a realistic exit strategy, rather than rigid bank ratios and complete income documentation. This asset-based approach lets real estate investors unlock capital even when tax returns, credit history, or credit scores are not perfect.

Short-term, interest-only structure that protects your cash flow

Most Gelt Financial hard money loans are short-term and interest-only, which keeps monthly payments lower while you renovate, lease up, or reposition the property. You pay interest during the 6- to 36-month term on a simple repayment schedule, then repay the loan in one lump sum when you refinance into permanent financing or sell the asset. This structure helps investors preserve cash for repairs, marketing, and other deal costs.

Three-step process to close fast

When Does a Hard Money Loan Make Sense for Investors?

Fix and flip projects with tight timelines

Hard money loans are ideal for fix-and-flip investors who need to close quickly on distressed or undervalued properties. You can purchase property that needs work with a higher down payment, but with far more speed and certainty than a bank can offer. Gelt Financial funds are based on the property and exit strategy, so experienced flippers can move fast when good inventory appears.

Buying and holding rental properties without draining cash reserves

Buy-and-hold investors use hard money financing to acquire or reposition rental properties while preserving their own cash for repairs, leasing, and reserves. Instead of tying up all your capital in the purchase, you leverage a short-term hard money loan, improve the property, then refinance into long-term rental or commercial financing. Gelt Financial structures these loans to protect cash flow with interest-only payments, so you are not forced into a large down payment that drains your reserves.

Acquiring commercial properties that banks will not finance

Many commercial properties do not meet bank guidelines due to vacancy, short operating history, credit issues, or unique property types. In those cases, a hard money loan lets you acquire the asset, stabilize income, and fix problems banks care about. As a direct private lender, Gelt Financial can approve and close on commercial properties that traditional lenders decline.

Cash out for time-sensitive opportunities and value-add deals

Investors often have significant equity tied up in existing properties but need cash quickly for a new opportunity or value-add project. A hard money cash-out refinance allows you to pull capital from one asset to fund another, without selling or waiting on a slow conventional loan. Gelt Financial can provide short-term cash-out financing to help you act on time-sensitive deals, renovations, or partner buyouts.

Solving urgent problems like foreclosure, tax liens, or partner buyouts

Hard money loans can help resolve urgent issues such as pending foreclosure, tax liens, judgment payoffs, or partner disputes. By paying off the immediate problem with a short-term loan, you gain time to stabilize the property, improve the financials, and plan a long-term solution. For situations where you only need to cover a short gap between buying and refinancing, a bridge loan from Gelt Financial may also be an effective structure.

Hard Money Lenders vs Traditional Bank Loans

Approval and documentation requirements

Hard money loans are asset-based; approval is driven mainly by the property value, equity, and a clear exit strategy, rather than tax returns and strict debt-to-income ratios. Traditional bank loans require complete documentation, tax returns, pay stubs, leases, bank statements, and they underwrite heavily to credit scores and global cash flow. Most hard money lenders set their own underwriting rules and focus less on your past credit history than banks do. With Gelt Financial, investors can often qualify even when they do not meet traditional bank guidelines.

Speed from application to closing

Hard money loans are built for speed, with many deals closing in days instead of the 30 to 60 days or more that bank loans often require. Banks have layered committees, stricter appraisal requirements, and more conditions before being clear to close. As a direct private lender, Gelt Financial can issue terms quickly and move from approval to funding on tight timelines when investors need to act fast.

Credit, income & reserve expectations

Traditional banks usually require a good credit score, stable W-2 or verifiable income, and significant post-closing reserves. Hard money lenders focus primarily on collateral and equity. They are often willing to work with complex income or less-than-stellar credit as long as the deal and exit strategy make sense. Gelt Financial reviews credit and financials, but does not require a specific minimum score, and can structure loans around real-world investor situations.

Rates, fees, and leverage

Hard money loans have higher interest rates and origination points than bank loans, and usually offer slightly lower maximum loan-to-value ratios, in exchange for speed and flexibility. Hard money loan rates and upfront fees are higher than what you see with traditional financing, such as conventional mortgages, a home equity loan, or a home equity line, and most hard money lenders require a higher down payment or a large down payment to make sure there is enough protective equity in the collateral property. These cons of hard money are offset by the ability to close quickly. Still, you should always run your deal through your own spreadsheet or mortgage calculator to ensure the returns justify the costs and short repayment periods.

If cheaper capital is available through alternatives to hard money, such as refinancing existing properties or using bank products, you should compare those options as part of your overall personal finance and real estate investing strategy. In every case, investors need to understand that if a borrower defaults on a hard money loan, the lender can foreclose on the collateral property, so having a realistic exit strategy to repay the loan is critical.